Sony Cuts Pay For Top Executives

I'm not organizing a canned food drive for the top executives at Sony quite yet, but recent events -- the earthquakes in Japan, the hacking of the PlayStation Network -- have hit Sony so hard that even the company's top men are feeling the effects. Sony chairman Howard Stringer's pay fell 15 percent last year, and executive deputy president Kazuo Hirai's compensation dropped from 110 million yen in the prior period to "only" 101 million yen (excluding stock options).

Stringer earned 345 million yen ($4.3 million USD) for the year ending March 31; in the same period last year, Stringer earned 408 million yen, according to Sony's filings with the Japanese government.

Paul Hodgson, a spokesman for GovernanceMetrics International, a New York-based governance consultant and rating service, told Bloomberg that he thinks Sony is sending a clear message with the pay drops. “This might be a reflection of Sony’s desire to say ‘we’re taking a hit for this ourselves, and feel the pain as well as our shareholders and customers,’” Hodgson said.

If you're a Sony customer, do you think Sony is truly "sharing your pain?" Is now a good time to jump on board Sony and buy up some cheap stock, on the idea that the company will come out of this relatively dark period a stronger, more competitive entity? Let us know in the comment section.